


when we were young

by reachedthebitterend



Series: rnmweek19 [1]
Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: M/M, rnmweek19
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-11
Updated: 2019-08-11
Packaged: 2020-08-19 07:22:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20205916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reachedthebitterend/pseuds/reachedthebitterend
Summary: written for rnmweek19 prompt for day one || Michael and Max talk about how Max is secretly dating Alex.





	when we were young

**Author's Note:**

> written on 07/22/19

Michael feels guilty, incredibly guilty, and it’s eating him up inside. 

He wishes, not for the first time, that he’d told Max about his crush on Alex Manes. Maybe then all of this guilt and bitter green jealousy festering inside of him wouldn’t be making him feel sick right now. 

Alex tried to kiss him, and Michael almost _let_ him, before he remembered the look on Max’s face when Alex had kissed _him_.

He had panicked and could see the disappointment on Alex’s face, but he had to forcibly remind himself, Alex was with Max.

Michael had proof.

Like the fact that Max has been listening to the type of music that Michael knows Alex likes, and Michael has seen Max come out of the Music Room after school a dopey smile on his face, not unlike the one wore after Alex kissed him, and he’s seen Alex sitting with Max in his jeep reading out of one of Max’s many, many, many notebooks that he doesn’t let anyone else touch let alone read.

And maybe it’s not that serious since Max still waxes poetic about Liz like she created the sun especially to shine against her long dark hair.

And if it had been anyone else but Max, then, maybe, maybe-

But it’s not, and Michael isn’t going to do _anything_.

He just wishes he could tell the guilt curdling in his stomach that.

Max drops down into the bench opposite Michael’s at the Crashdown.

He’d been talking to Liz by the counter while Michael festered in his guilt.

He had to tell Max, right? 

That’s what you did when someone your friend is dating tried to kiss you.

But he can’t quite figure out how to say it.

“I’m thinking of asking Liz out,” Max says, a bright smile on his face as he ignores his food to speak.

Michael looks up at him startled dropping his fry in shock. 

“What about Alex?” Michael blurts out unable to help himself.

Max gives him a confused look, “_What_ about Alex?”

Michael licks his lips and leans in a bit closer, “Aren’t you guys, dating?”

Max chokes on his milkshake.

“What?” He says sputtering. “No! What? I mean, not because he’s a guy or gay or anything. I have no problem with him being gay. I just don’t like him like that.”

Michael furrows his brow and gives Max a look, “You guys have been hanging out a lot lately. And he kissed you during lunch like three weeks ago, and you seemed to be into him then.”

Max actually blushes bright red, “Tha-that’s not-”

“And you’re letting him read your stuff, you don’t even let Isobel do that.”

Max scrubs his hands over his face.

“Does everyone think we’re dating?” Max asks, voice muffled.

“Not _everyone_,” Michael says slowly playing with the straw of his milkshake.

Max lifts his head to look at him, and then his eyes widen in horror, “No.”

“She was sitting right next to me when he kissed you and you spent the rest of the day acting like you were on cloud nine.”

Max drops his head onto the table, rattling their plates and cups.

Michael watches him with his bottom lip trapped between his teeth, before he gives up on not asking.

“If you’re not dating, then what-?”

Max lifts his head up, cutting the rest of Michael’s sentence off with the sort of guilty look on his face.

“What?” Michael asks, furrowing his brow.

Max exhales and rubs his hands over his face. “You can’t tell anyone.”

Michael gives Max a look, “Who would I tell? Other than Liz, which will do you a favor if you’re actually going to ask her out.”

“Right,” Max says. “He doesn’t want his dad to know for some reason. But I’ve been helping him write a song for the Hot 97.3 Amateur Songwriter Contest. The winner gets to have the song professionally recorded, and a 200$ cash prize that we’re gonna split if he wins.”

Michael blinks at him, and processes that, and it makes sense, sort of.

“Okay,” Michael says and leans back in his seat. “That still doesn’t explain why he kissed you, though.”

Max gives him a speculative look at that, and Michael tries not to look as invested as he feels in the answer, but it’s nearly impossible to hide anything from Max and Isobel.

Max gives him a knowing look, and Michael tries not to groan. “He got excited, and really liked the song, and he’s kind of tactile once you actually get beneath the tough exterior.”

He raises an eyebrow at Michael, and Michael flusters and glares at him. “Okay, well that doesn’t explain the look on your face afterwards.”

Max actually blushes, really, really red and looks down, looking bashful, and he mumbles something under his breath that Michael doesn’t understand.

“What?” Michael asks feeling a little like he’s on a rollercoaster.

Max blows out a breath, and then looks at Michael with the same soft wonderous smile on his face.

“He liked something that I wrote,” Max says, voice awed. “No one has ever liked something that I wrote. And he called it, perfect.”

His smile widens a little more, and Michael feels like a huge weight has been lifted off his shoulders.

Michael drags his milkshake closer, “You know more people would like what you write, if you showed people your stuff.”

Max’s cheeks go red again. “Yeah, well, you’re my brother, you’re supposed to say nice things.”

Michael just shakes his head and grabs another fry. “So tell me more about asking Liz out.”

Max’s smile brightens and he starts to talk about there being moments when you feel like there could be something more.

Michael thinks about Alex and feels his heart stutter in his chest.


End file.
